Loyalty, devotion and courage

Flags of Our Fathers, the new movie directed by Clint Eastwood and based on the book by the same title, opens in theaters this weekend. The movie and book tell the story of the Battle of Iwo Jima, one of the most ferocious and costly battles of the Second World War.

On February 19, 1945 70,000 Americans, consisting mainly of the 3rd, 4th and 5th Marine Divisions of the Fifth Marine Amphibious Corps, including supporting sea and air units, attacked the Japanese defenses on Iwo Jima island. The 22,000 Japanese defenders had been preparing for the invasion for two years and had determined to fight to the death since they were defending Japanese soil for the first time.

At the end of the month long battle, the Americans would suffer 26,000 casualties, including more than 6,800 deaths. Almost all of the 22,000 Japanese defenders died due to their fanatical loyalty to the Japanese Emperor. One of the most famous pictures in the history of photography came out of the battle when photographer Joe Rosenthal snapped a shot of six marines raising the American flag on Mt. Suribachi.

For a generation of Americans, the name Iwo Jima became synonymous with heroism and valor. The story of Sgt Charles A Bateman of Cooperstown, NY, became one of hundreds of incredible stories of courage. Bateman was slammed by a 320 mm spigot mortar. He woke up on a hospital ship with a tag on his big toe that said "Concussion." He later wrote, "Didn't look serious to me so I jumped ship, went ashore and rejoined my unit. So, I was missing then, officially MIA. Sorrowfully, a telegram saying that got to my family. You can imagine their relief when they found the message was wrong."

I find incredible inspiration in Sgt. Bateman’s commitment to his fellow Marines and to the cause of victory. Some men would have used this kind of injury as a “million dollar wound,” an opportunity to stay out of harm’s way. Evidently this never occurred to Bateman, who thought only of his duty to his comrades and country.

In 2 Timothy 2:3, the Scripture uses the analogy of military service to illustrate the Christian’s devotion to Christ, “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.” Men, we are at war, a spiritual war. We can expect hardship, attack, perhaps even wounds from time to time. We must deal with difficult emotions of fear, loneliness and frustration. This is what soldiers do. May our commitment to Christ and our band of brothers bear the same marks of loyalty, devotion and courage.

Shoulder to shoulder,

Gregg